Pico Azores: tips on planning your trip

“Pico Azores: tips on planning your trip” is the sixth installment of a series of nine blog posts about the Azores islands. The posts are meant to give you a detailed overview of each one of them to help you plan your trip, whether you decide to visit one, two, or all nine. If you have any questions or a specific request, feel free to drop me an email and I’ll do my best to answer it or to put you in touch with the right contact.

About Pico

The island’s (and the country’s) highest peak rises 2350 meters (7700 feet) above sea level, thus dubbing the second largest island in the archipelago as the “mountain island”. This should be quite enough to impress every visitor, don’t you agree? Well, it should. But to sweeten the deal, Pico tops it off with its Landscape of Vineyard Culture (listed as UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2004) and the contemporary Cella Bar (one of the winners of ArchDaily’s 2016 Building of the Year Awards).

Settled by Portuguese from the North in the late 1400’s, the main economic activities were based on the production of wheat and dye plants (as was very common in the other settlements in the archipelago). However, soon the settlers realized the potential of the lava soils and switched to wine producing instead. If you have ever tasted Pico wine, you know it was a smart move.

Pico has a very strong Historical link to the whaling activities, first as sperm whale hunters from the late 1800’s until it was banned in 1986, and now as watchers and protectors. The uniqueness of the volcanic soil has also boosted the wine making industry. The tourism industry rides these both waves (of whale watching and wine producing) brilliantly, determined to highlight the “grey island” as a culturally diverse travel destination.

Cold as f❄k

A photo posted by João Néné (@j.nen) on Dec 26, 2015 at 10:28am PST

Top things to do in Pico island

Climbing Portugal’s highest peak is obviously an experience of a lifetime, especially if it’s improved by the knowledge and experience of a local guide. Touring the local vineyards and getting to know the whale species you can spot should also be on your to-do list.

Recommended Local Companies

Please note that I’m not listing ALL the local companies. These are tailored suggestions that fit the editorial tone of this blog. To narrow down the list I used the following criteria:

Local companies listed on visitazores.com. We use the term “local companies” for companies that are owned by locals and/or operate locally only.

A website in English where you can easily browse through photos and gather all needed data for an informed decision (such as prices and previous customers’ ratings).

Easy to follow on social media and/or easy to contact from abroad (with a working email)

Dislcaimer: prices may vary over time and faster than I can update them here. Please double check all prices on these companies’ official websites!

Activities:whale and dolphin watching (prices start from €48/US $53, per person), swimming with dolphins (prices start from €60/US $67, per person), boat rental (prices start from €370/US $413 for an RIB, and €480/US $536 for a cabin boat), day in paradise – 6-hour tour in a cabin boat (€980/US $1095).

Top cultural events in Pico island

Local religious events, especially the Holy Ghost festivities, are as common here as in any other island of the Azores. But the most important cultural events here are those that honor the heritage and History of wine producing and the whaling industry.

The Whaling Week (“Semana dos Baleeiros”) happens in the town of Lajes every August. It’s a mix of cultural events and concerts, but with a great focus on the whaling heritage. The most special happening of them all is the race of traditional whaling boats — not so much for the race itself, but for the chance of seeing those tiny vessels in the ocean and to imagine how small they look compared to the whales their sailors used to hunt.

The Grape Harvest Festival (“Festas das Vindimas”) happens in the town of Madalena every September. Expect ethnographic and folklore events related to the wine industry, guided wine tours, local cuisine and, of course, plenty of wine tasting.

For out-of-the-ordinary cultural events, MiratecArts has been proudly hosting the Azores Fringe Festival in Pico since 2013, among other art-related events on the mountain island.

Azores food: what to eat in Pico

Local wine and cheese are the bases of Pico’s gastronomy, which seems to be quite the start of a love affair with the island. Doesn’t it all sound perfect? Mountain, sea, cheese and wine? But because all these views (and probably the mountain climb) will make you crave for a little more sustenance, the island is also famous for its stewed octopus in “vinho de cheiro” (roughly translated to “fragrant wine”, it’s a typical local wine produced from an American variety of hybrid grapes known as “Isabella”) and fried pork sausage with boiled or baked taro roots (although they’re called “inhames” in Portuguese and sound like yams in English, they’re not the same. They’re brownish in color and may not look like the most attractive food on the plate, but your taste buds will have a different saying on the matter.)

Local souvenirs

In the height of the whaling industry, the engraved sperm whale teeth were a common souvenir. These days the whaling industry is remembered through handmade small-scale models of the old whaling boats.

The local Handicrafts Schools keep the artisan traditions alive while creating typical local straw hats and flowers made with fish scales.

Where to stay in Pico island

Please note that I’m not listing ALL accommodation possibilities. These are tailored suggestions that fit the editorial tone of this blog. To narrow down the list of places to stay on the island, I used the following criteria:

One-bedroom apartment:
Low season (January to March and October to December) – €40/US $44, per day
Shoulder season (April, May, and September) – €45/US $50, per day
High season (June to August) – €50/US $55, per day

Two-bedroom apartment:
Low season (January to March and October to December) – €50/US $55, per day
Shoulder season (April, May and September) – €55/US $61, per day
High season (June to August) – €60/US $67, per day

I hope you enjoyed this post! Every month I send out a newsletter with the latest blog posts and curated articles about sustainable cultural tourism. Because Tripper strives to be GDPR-compliant, for detailed information about the monthly newsletter and how to subscribe please read this page.

24 Comments

Thank you so much for your postings. My husband and I are senior citizens. Since my husband has a knee problem, we can only do short hikes. I would love to visit Flores, but we cannot do much hiking, are there other things to do? As of now, I have allotted 3 days in Flores. Thank you in advance for your help/

Your post is absolutely helpful!!
Many travellers without informations don’t plan well the trip and spend only few days over here at Pico and after they regret they didn’t stay enough….
Cheers from the Island
And count on us to guide you through the best experience on your next trip here! info@tripixazores.com
Rai

What a great and detailed post about Pico! To be honest, I had never heard of Pico before. Given your description, it sounds like there is lots to do and see. Would love to get my hands on the stewed octopus you mention 🙂 Very informative and great pictures.

About Tripper

Hi, I’m Sandra!

I am a Portuguese freelance web content writer and travel blogger born in the Azores and currently based in Lisbon. Since 2014 I’ve been blogging about travel, culture, and the people I meet in between here at Tripper, a blog about sustainable cultural tourism.

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